Office of Public Witness touts health care conference call with President Obama

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)'s Office of Public Witness in Washington, D.C., is encouraging Presbyterians to participate in a Sept. 21 conference call with President Obama to learn more about the new health care plan.

Entitled "Linking Community and Faith Leaders to Information about New Benefits," the call will be available by telephone and internet. It will take place Tuesday, Sept. 21 at 4 PM Eastern, 3 PM Central, 2 PM Mountain, 1 PM Pacific.

Those with internet access can join the call online. For those without internet access, dial: (888) 455-6860 or (866) 844-9416.

The president will discuss key new benefits under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which was adopted by the Congress six months ago. Many ACA benefits kick in Sept. 23 — eligible young people up to age 26 can stay on their parents' health plan, key prevention benefits are covered without co-pays or deductibles in new plans, and insurance companies may no longer deny coverage to kids because of pre-existing conditions or drop someone from coverage because of a paperwork mistake.

The call will be hosted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

HHS officials will provide an update on how the Affordable Care Act is being implemented, highlight new outreach resources, and answer questions from community and faith leaders. Community and faith leaders will also share their efforts to bring the benefits of health care reform home to communities.

Information for this story furnished by the PC(USA) Office of Public Witness.